Improvement in pelting-machines



sited tatrt strat JQB BLACKHAM, OF'BROOK'LYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO III SELF AND JAMES Il. PRENTICE, OF SAME PLACE.

Letters Patent No. 94,939, dated Scptmnber 21, 18610,.

IMPROVEMENT IN FELTING-MACHINES.

The .Schedule referred 'to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same;4

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, J on W. BLACKHAM, of Brooklyr, lin the county of Kings, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Felting Hats; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof. i

I will first describe what I consider the best' means of carrying outmy invention, and will afterwards designate the points which I believe to be new therein.A

, The accompanying drawings form a part of this specification'.-

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my machine, with the presser' down at work;

*Figure 2 is a vertical section, withthc presser up, ready to receive hats or allow their removal; and

Figure 3 is a plan View, showing the machine inthe latter condition.

Similar letters of refr-.rence indicate like parts in all the; figures.

A A is aframe of cast-iron, made in sections bolted firml'y together.

` 1,3 is a tank adapted to' contain water; and

C O' are steam-pipes, receiving .steam from a boiler not represented, and discharging it through small oriices in the upper sides ofthe pipes. The steam being discharged below the surface ot' the water, heats. the water, and maintains it at a temperature at or near the boiling point. It furthermore throws up the water in small jets, andthus -wets and heats the hats which are above the water. y,

l) D are rollers, mounted in ixcd bearings, and

driven by gearing, so that both turn in the same direction. .Power is received through a belt, or other suitable means, from a steam-engine orother motor not represented.

I prefer to apply the power to thc shaft E, and to communicate the motion to the rolls D D through the gearing represented, but this is not absolutely essentialto success. It is sufficient that the proper rotary motion is imparted to the rolls l) D, and also to the shaft E, the purpose ot' which latter will presently appear.

Il is an inclined table, on which the hats may be handled and rolled Vand unrolled, as inthe ordinary manner, by hand.

(nr is a dipping-trough, represented as separated, or

Ipartially separated, from the tank l, but there is no necessity foi-"any separation. I propose, in future machines, to make the tanks Ii and Gin one, so that the `heating of thc water in the one will maintain the temf perature'in the other.

The hats, when properly rolled in the cloth, or oth- `crwise prepared to be subjected to the felting-operation, are laid 'in the trough-like space between thetwo rolls l) I), as indicated by Q. The motion ofthe rollers tends to induce a constant tun'ibling orturning of the roll of hat-s.

I is a rcciprocating-ii'ame-or presser, made prefer# ably ot' iron, faced on the under side with hard wood.

It is reciprocatcd by means of levers J J, which are pivoted atj, and which receive motion from cranks ce on the shaft E, through the ymedium of the links K. As the shaft E revolycs, it compels a vibrating motion of the levers J, and these communicate a corresponding reciprocating motion to thepresser I.

The connection of the levers J to the presser I is made through the medium of arms l', xed rigidly on the presser I, and carrying pills if, which stand in slots in the leverJ. Y

There are springs i, which press down the arms l', and there are corresponding or stronger springs t, which hohl down the main body of the presser l.

'lhe force of these springs 'L2 is adjustable hy means of the cords i,'which are wound and unwonnd upon pulleys l, which are mounted on the shaft L, which is supported on rigid arms m.,'1ixed on the shaft M', and controlled in position by the hand-lever M.

There are two notches, Nl and Ni, in the board or guide N, which is tixwed on the frame A. By pressing vthe hand-lever M a little aside, it may be readily lib- -cratcd from either notch Nor N 2, and it may then be moved to the other notch and allowed to remain there. By shifting the hand-lever fromthe notch N1 to thel notch N2, the shaft L and its attachments are depressed, and by shifting the hand-lever M back to the notch N they are correspondingly elevated.

There are slides O O attached to the shaft L, and adapted to move up and down within the frame A., between the framing and the hot-water tank.

These carry wheels on their upper ends, as indicated by I), which are adapted to receive and support the weight of the reciprocating-prcsser I.

When the hand-lever M is in the notch Nl, the slides O O are in their highest position, and the presser I reciproca-tes at a considerable height above the rollers D, being supported on the wheels P. This is theposition'of the parts when the hat-roll Q is introduced. Then thc hand-lever M is shifted into the notch N Y, which iowersthe shaft L, and correspondingly. lowers the rcciprocatiiig-presser I, allowing it to rest with its` full weight upon the roll of hats, and reciprocate thereon, rolling, or tending to roll, the hats iirst in one direction and then th'e other The downward force exerted by the presser I is also increased by the springs i2. I provide means for adjusting the force of these springs i2 with great delicacy, and to an equal extent onthe opposite sides ofthe machine. This is eii'ected by the turning of the shaft R, which is carried on one of the arms m.

` This shaft R has an endless screw, Rl, which works in-a corresponding worm-wheel, L', i'ixed on the shaft i, and thus increases and diminishes the tension of the springs i2, as has just been explained. But it will be observed thatthe working of the hand-lever M also y to a certain extent increases and diminishes this tension.; that is to say, when the hand-lever M is changed from the notch N1 into the notch N2, it not only depresses the slide-s O, and thus allows the presser I to descend upon the hats, and depresses the shaft L, and thus correspondingly pulls down on the springs il, but it also gives a partial revolution to the wheels or pulleys l, and thus takes up the cords i, and thereby increases the tension on the springs; that is to say, the tension on the springs t2 is lessened every time the presser I is elevated, and is increased when it is depressed. Thus the force of the springs i2 is greatest when they are made available in working on the hats, and is least when the presser' is elevated and is riding idly on the wheels I?.

' Itis important to provide against the hats traversing backward over the rollers D D. In other words, the hats must be kept in the groove or depression between the rollers D D, notwithstanding the fact that the motion of the rollers tends to carry the roll of hats continually backward in the machine, and that the motion of the reciprocating-presser I tends to promote this motion in the backward direction.

I prevent the motion of the roll in that direction, and also insure a degree of tightness in the roll which has not been before patentedrin felting-machinery, by means which I will now describe. I tix to the bottom of the hot-water tank B, orto a corresponding cross-bar, a series of stops, T T.

These are made, by preference, in the form of smooth iron bars, of reetangularor slightly rounded section. They are set in deepv groovesin the rearmost roller D, so as to be neariy in line with the axis of that roller, and they project up through slots in the reciprocatingpresser I, as represented.

These `slots are longer than the reciprocating motions of the presser, so that there vis full liberty for the presser to reciprocate withouttouching the stops.

After each roll of hats has been sufliciently treated in the machine, the operator pulls the hand-lever M into the notch N, dextrously removes the roll of hats, introduces another previouslyprepared, and again shifts the hand-lever M into the notch N.

Now, while the machine is treating the roll of hats just introduced, by pressing it, and rubbing it between the rolls D D, the presser-I and the stops T, an at tendant leisurely unrolls the hats just removed, and properly shifting their position, rolls them up again,

to be .again exchanged 0n elevating the presser I, and the operation is thus repeated until both rolls are treated.

I have experimented with the machine suiiciently to find that the felting can be conducted more rapidly,

and especially that the product is more perfect than with any machine previously known to lne.

The machine is obviously smaller, simpler, cheaper to construct and keep in order, and requires less power than those felting-machines in which a lgreat number of felting-rollers is employed.

It is not absolutely essential to the success of the other; portions of my invention that the presser I be lifted by the hand-lever M. It may be raised by the aid of a cord and pulley rigged above, or by any other means, and the other portions of the mechanism may operate the same as is here described.

It may be important to provide, under some conditions, against a tendency of the hats to escape from between the rollers in the opposite direction to that guarded by the stops T. In such case I can provide another series of stops on the front side, making them to project upward to a less extent, so that the hats may be readily introduced and removed over their tops.

Many other modications may be made in the details of the mechanism without materially affecting the action of the machine, or ot' the parts and combinations here described.

I can employ three of `the rolls D, if preferred. In such case I can treat two rolls or sets ot' hats in the two groovesor channels thus provided on the sides of the rollers, but I believe that no suihcient'gain will result from thus complicating the structure.

I believe that I can felt successfully on a single roller D, with the reciprocating-presser and stops arranged relatively thereto about as represented, and I greatly prefer to use two rollers, and to let the roll of hats turn in the space between, as described.

I claim- 1. In combination with one or more rolls D D, the stop or stops T, and reciprocating-presser I, combined andarranged for joint operation relatively to each other, and to the means for wetting, heating, Svc., in a felting-machine, substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

2. rIhe lever M, the arms M, the slides O, and wheels P, incornbination with the reciprocating-presser I of a hat-felting machine, and arranged to operate therewith in the manner and for the purposes herein set forth.

`In testimony whereof', I have hereunto set my name, in presenceof two subscribing witnesses.

' JOB W. BLACKHAM.

Witnesses W. C. DEY, C. C. LIvINGs. 

